Black plate (1,1)Chevrolet Avalanche Owner Manual - 2011
2011 Chevrolet Avalanche Owner ManualM
In Brief. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-1
Instrument Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-2
Initial Drive Information . . . . . . . . 1-4
Vehicle Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-20
Performance and Maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-26
Keys, Doors and Windows . . . 2-1
Keys and Locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-2
Doors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-10
Vehicle Security . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-17
Exterior Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-20
Interior Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-22
Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-24
Roof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-26
Seats and Restraints . . . . . . . . . 3-1
Head Restraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-2
Front Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-3
Rear Seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-10
Safety Belts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-12
Airbag System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-28
Child Restraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3-46 Storage
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-1
Storage Compartments . . . . . . . . 4-1
Luggage/Load Locations . . . . . . . 4-2
Additional Storage Features . . . 4-6
Roof Rack System . . . . . . . . . . . 4-13
Instruments and Controls . . . . 5-1
Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-2
Warning Lights, Gauges, and Indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-10
Information Displays . . . . . . . . . . 5-28
Vehicle Messages . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-37
Vehicle Personalization . . . . . . . 5-47
Universal Remote System . . . . 5-56
Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-1
Exterior Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-1
Interior Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-6
Lighting Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-7
Infotainment System . . . . . . . . . 7-1
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-2
Radio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-8
Audio Players . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-14
Rear Seat Infotainment . . . . . . . 7-34
Phone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-46 Climate Controls
. . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-1
Climate Control Systems . . . . . . 8-1
Air Vents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-10
Driving and Operating . . . . . . . . 9-1
Driving Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-2
Starting and Operating . . . . . . . 9-30
Engine Exhaust . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-38
Automatic Transmission . . . . . . 9-39
Drive Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-44
Brakes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-52
Ride Control Systems . . . . . . . . 9-54
Cruise Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-58
Object Detection Systems . . . . 9-60
Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-68
Towing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9-74
Conversions and Add-Ons . . . 9-93
Vehicle Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-1
General Information . . . . . . . . . . 10-2
Vehicle Checks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-4
Headlamp Aiming . . . . . . . . . . . 10-35
Bulb Replacement . . . . . . . . . . 10-37
Electrical System . . . . . . . . . . . . 10-40
Black plate (5,1)Chevrolet Avalanche Owner Manual - 2011
Introduction v
Vehicle Symbol Chart
Here are some additional symbols
that may be found on the vehicle
and what they mean. For more
information on the symbol, refer to
the Index.
0:Adjustable Pedals
9:Airbag Readiness Light
#:Air Conditioning
!:Antilock Brake System (ABS)
g:Audio Steering Wheel Controls
or OnStar®
$: Brake System Warning Light
":Charging System
I:Cruise Control
B: Engine Coolant Temperature
O:Exterior Lamps
#:Fog Lamps
.: Fuel Gauge
+:Fuses
3: Headlamp High
/Low-Beam Changer
j: LATCH System Child
Restraints
*: Malfunction Indicator Lamp
::Oil Pressure
g:Outside Power
Foldaway Mirrors
}: Power
/:Remote Vehicle Start
>:Safety Belt Reminders
7:Tire Pressure Monitor
_: Tow/Haul Mode
F:Traction Control
M:Windshield Washer Fluid
Black plate (12,1)Chevrolet Avalanche Owner Manual - 2011
1-12 In Brief
Mirror Adjustment
Exterior Mirrors
Vehicles with outside power mirrors
and foldaway mirrors have controls
on the driver door.
1. Press (A) or (B) to select thedriver or passenger side mirror.
2. Press one of the four arrows located on the control pad to
adjust the mirror. 3. Press either (A) or (B) again to
deselect the mirror.
See Power Mirrors on page 2‑20.
Power Foldaway Mirrors
To fold the mirrors:
1. Press (C) to fold the mirrors out to the driving position.
2. Press (D) to fold the mirrors in to the folded position.
Manual Foldaway Mirrors
Manually fold the mirrors inward
to prevent damage when going
through an automatic car wash.
To fold, pull the mirror toward the
vehicle. Push the mirror outward, to
return to its original position.
See Folding Mirrors on page 2‑21.
Interior Mirror
Vehicles with a manual rearview
mirror can be adjusted to see clearly
behind the vehicle. Hold the mirror
in the center to move it up or down
and side to side. To reduce
headlamp glare during nighttime
use, push the tab forward for
daytime use and pull it for
nighttime use.
Vehicles with the automatic dimming
feature will automatically reduce the
glare of lights from behind the
vehicle. The dimming feature comes
on and the indicator light illuminates
each time the vehicle is started.
SeeAutomatic Dimming Rearview
Mirror on page 2‑23 for more
information.
Black plate (14,1)Chevrolet Avalanche Owner Manual - 2011
1-14 In Brief
Dome Lamp Override
The dome lamp override button is
located next to the exterior lamps
control.
k:Press the button in and the
dome lamps remain off when a door
is opened. Press the button again to
return it to the extended position so
that the dome lamps come on when
a door is opened. Reading Lamps
For vehicles with reading lamps in
the overhead console, press the
button located next to the lamp to
turn it on or off.
The vehicle may also have reading
lamps in other locations. The lamps
cannot be adjusted.
For more information about interior
lamps, see:
.Dome Lamps on page 6‑6.
.Reading Lamps on page 6‑7.
.Instrument Panel Illumination
Control on page 6‑6.
Exterior Lighting
The exterior lamps control is located
on the instrument panel to the left of
the steering wheel.
P:
Turns off the automatic
headlamps and Daytime Running
Lamps (DRL). Turn the headlamp
control to the off position again to
turn the automatic headlamps or
DRL back on.
For vehicles first sold in Canada,
the off position will only work when
the vehicle is shifted into P (Park).
Black plate (15,1)Chevrolet Avalanche Owner Manual - 2011
In Brief 1-15
AUTO :Automatically turns on
the headlamps, parking lamps,
instrument panel lights, license plate
lamps, and taillamps.
;: Turns on the parking lamps,
instrument panel lights, license plate
lamps, and taillamps.
2: Turns on the headlamps,
parking lamps, instrument panel
lights, license plate lamps,
and taillamps.
For more information, see:
.Exterior Lamp Controls on
page 6‑1.
.Daytime Running Lamps (DRL)
on page 6‑3.
.Fog Lamps on page 6‑5.
Windshield Wiper/Washer
8: Single wipe, turn to8, then
release. Several wipes, hold the
band on
8longer.
9: Turns the windshield
wipers off.
6: Turn the band up for more
frequent wipes or down for
less frequent wipes.
6: Slow wipes.
?:Fast wipes.
L:Push the paddle at the top of
the lever to spray washer fluid on
the windshield.
See Windshield Wiper/Washer on
page 5‑5.
Black plate (17,1)Chevrolet Avalanche Owner Manual - 2011
Keys, Doors and Windows 2-17
Vehicle Security
This vehicle has theft-deterrent
features; however, they do not make
it impossible to steal.
Anti-Theft Alarm System
Your vehicle has a content
theft-deterrent alarm system.
This is the security light.
To arm the theft-deterrent system:
1. Open the door.
2. Lock the door with the RemoteKeyless Entry (RKE) transmitter
or the power door lock switch.
The security light will come on to
inform the driver the system is
arming. If a door is open when
the doors are locked, the
security light will flash. If the delayed locking feature is
turned on, the theft‐deterrent
system will not start the arming
process until the last door is
closed and the delay timer has
expired. See
Delayed Locking
on page 2‑8.
3. Close all doors. The security light should go off after about
30 seconds. The alarm is not
armed until the security light
goes off.
The content theft deterrent
system does not sense if the
midgate or tailgate are open or
ajar, therefore, vehicle contents
may not be protected if the
midgate is left open or ajar.
If a locked driver door is opened
without using the RKE transmitter,
a ten second pre-alarm will occur.
The horn will chirp and the lights will
flash. If the key is not placed in the
ignition and turned to START or the
door is not unlocked by pressing
the unlock button on the RKE
transmitter during the ten second pre-alarm, the alarm will go off. Your
vehicle's headlamps will flash and
the horn will sound for about
30 seconds, then will turn off to
save the battery power.
The theft-deterrent system will not
activate if the doors are locked with
the vehicle's key or the manual door
lock. It activates only if you use the
power door lock switch with the door
open or the RKE transmitter. You
should also remember that you can
start your vehicle with the correct
ignition key if the alarm has been
set off.
To avoid setting off the alarm by
accident:
.If you do not want to activate the
theft-deterrent system, the
vehicle should be locked with
the door key after the doors are
closed.
.Always unlock the doors with the
RKE transmitter. Unlocking a
door any other way will set off
the alarm if it is armed.
Black plate (18,1)Chevrolet Avalanche Owner Manual - 2011
2-18 Keys, Doors and Windows
If you set off the alarm by accident,
press unlock on the RKE transmitter
or place the key in the ignition and
turn it to START to turn off the
alarm. The alarm will not stop if you
try to unlock a door any other way.
Testing the Alarm
To test the alarm:
1. From inside the vehicle, lowerthe driver window and open the
driver door.
2. Activate the system by locking the doors with the
power door lock switch while
the door is open, or with the
RKE transmitter.
3. Get out of the vehicle, close the door and wait for the security
light to go out.
4. Then reach in through the window, unlock the door with the
manual door lock and open the
door. This should set off the
alarm. While the alarm is set, the power
door unlock switch will not work.
If the alarm does not sound when it
should but the headlamps flash,
check to see if the horn works. The
horn fuse may be blown. To replace
the fuse, see
Instrument Panel Fuse
Block on page 10‑46 andEngine
Compartment Fuse Block on
page 10‑41.
If the alarm does not sound or the
headlamps do not flash, the vehicle
should be serviced by your dealer.
Immobilizer
See Radio Frequency Statement on
page 13‑19 for information
regarding Part 15 of the Federal
Communications Commission (FCC)
rules and Industry Canada
Standards RSS-210/220/310.
Immobilizer Operation
This vehicle has PASS-Key®III+
(Personalized Automotive Security
System) theft-deterrent system.
PASS-Key III+ is a passive
theft-deterrent system.
The system is automatically armed
when the key is removed from the
ignition.
The system is automatically
disarmed when the key is turned to
ON/RUN, ACC/ACCESSORY,
or START from the LOCK/OFF
position.
You do not have to manually arm or
disarm the system.
The security light will come on if
there is a problem with arming or
disarming the theft-deterrent
system.
When the PASS-Key III+ system
senses that someone is using
the wrong key, it prevents the
vehicle from starting.
Black plate (21,1)Chevrolet Avalanche Owner Manual - 2011
Keys, Doors and Windows 2-21
Folding Mirrors
Vehicles with outside power
foldaway mirrors have controls on
the driver door.
Power Foldaway
1. Press (C) to fold the mirrors outto the driving position.
2. Press (D) to fold the mirrors in to the folded position. Resetting the Power Foldaway
Mirrors
Reset the power foldaway mirrors if:
.The mirrors are accidentally
obstructed while folding.
.They are accidentally manually
folded/unfolded.
.The mirrors will not stay in the
unfolded position.
.The mirrors vibrate at normal
driving speeds.
Fold and unfold the mirrors one time
using the mirror controls to reset
them to their normal position.
A popping noise may be heard
during the resetting of the power
foldaway mirrors. This sound is
normal after a manual folding
operation.
Manual Foldaway
Manually fold the mirrors inward
to prevent damage when going
through an automatic car wash.
To fold, pull the mirror toward the
vehicle. Push the mirror outward, to
return to its original position.
Automatic Dimming
If equipped with an automatic
dimming mirror, the driver outside
mirror adjusts for the glare of the
headlamps behind you. See
Automatic Dimming Rearview Mirror
on page 2‑23.
Turn Signal Indicator
The vehicle may also have a turn
signal indicator on the mirror. An
arrow on the mirror flashes in the
direction of the turn or lane change.